Anyone overcome social anxiety and become a high performing salesperson on here?

41 replies
^ I would love to hear how you did it.

Before anyone says "if your socially anxious you CANT become a superstar salesperson" let me tell you my story...

1. Started working in a call centre at the age of 18. Was horrendous. Had no confidence, was scared of picking up the phone and was literally petrified all the time. I was weak and timid. I couldnt hold a conversation. No one liked me. I felt like I was invisible.

2. Becuuse I was so crap I ended up getting fired.

3. Started a job in b2b sales for a legal firm. Ihad a very supportive manager who really believed in me and in the end I became the highest performing and longest serving salesperson in the companys history eventually being promoted to director and having my own office.

4. I now work in ad sales (only started about 2 months ago) and have had some pretty remarkable achievments at this new place however I feel like my social anxiety is kicking in again and my self confidence is at an all time low. Im starting to get tounge tied more and more often. How can I regain my confidence and smash my targets like I used to?

Thanks a millon.
#anxiety #high #overcome #performing #salesperson #social
  • Profile picture of the author James English
    The same way you did it before, pound through it and pretend its not there. Fake it until it goes away. The anxiety will always be there to some extent, but that doesn't need to stop you from achieving your goals.

    My anxiety ranks up there with the best of them. But at the end of the day, my desire to make money/perform for my clients is greater than my desire to give into my anxiety and do nothing.
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    • Profile picture of the author Brandon Tanner
      Originally Posted by James English View Post

      But at the end of the day, my desire to make money/perform for my clients is greater than my desire to give into my anxiety and do nothing.
      Bingo!

      You will succeed when the pain of not succeeding becomes greater than the "pain" of your social anxiety. If you're not at that point right now, that simply means that you don't "want" it bad enough (and I say that with all due respect, because there have been MANY times in my own life where I haven't "wanted" it bad enough. Thankfully though, those days are getting further and farther between).

      That said, I think that much of the social anxiety that comes from selling happens when you focus too much on, ummmm.... "selling" , and not enough on developing relationships. Cold-selling to total strangers = stressful. Making "recommendations" to someone who you have a warm, pre-existing relationship with = easy.

      And it helps if you really believe in your product. A good rule of thumb is... if you would feel good recommending the product to your prospect even if you did not earn a single cent from doing so (in other words, if you believe that the product would truly benefit them / their business)... then you're on the right track.
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  • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
    Into my early 20s I was terrified to pick up the phone, unless it was to call someone I already knew.

    The idea of calling another company was out of the question.

    In the early 2000s I got a job as a credit manager for a national wholesaler. Did that for 4 years. Collected $2 million a month for 7 branches -- and that got me on the phone. I had to talk to people. It was B2B, so we were nice about it.

    At the end of the first 6 months, I had seen and heard everything there was. In the 4 years I think I had 4 altercations where I raised my voice and got nasty. Only when someone lied to me. Surprising how little that happened, lying to me. It was a great opportunity to get comfortable talking about the very touchy subject of money.

    So by the time I was 26, there was no more problem with picking up the phone and calling someone...about anything.
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    • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
      Extremely shy growing up. Never went on a date, never went to a dance, never went to a school sporting event. I didn't even go to my own graduation.

      So naturally, I went into sales.

      "Sold" fire alarms for a few months. Never made a sale.
      I decided to sell life insurance for Mutual Of Omaha. It was because of the TV show Wild Kingdom. I met an agent for that company that encouraged me. They turned me down...for a commission job....

      I got a job at Monumental Life. I just started knocking on doors, because I didn't know any better. I assumed you should do that for at least 8 hours a day, because that was a normal work day in a factory.

      By the end of the first year, I was the number 3 agent out of 2,200 agents.
      I read a couple of books by a legendary insurance salesman, Ben Feldman, and just copied what he did, and worked very hard.

      Then I bought an expensive vacuum cleaner, and got a job selling those. I actually started studying sales as a subject about then.

      Five years later I was very good at it, and ten years later, I was very well known in the entire industry. For the last ten years, I've been a paid speaker at the industry trade show. I was the keynote speaker once.

      I would walk into the room, and I'd hear a few people whisper "That's him".
      But anyone can be great at selling, if you just continually work at getting better. Most salespeople just don't. They think selling is telling sports stories, or telling dirty jokes....or buying lunch. No. Selling is social engineering. I'm an engineer.

      Now I write books on Selling & Marketing.

      I'm still the same shy kid. I never learned how to enjoy groups of people. When I'm not selling, I mostly write or am pretty quiet at home, reading.
      Most normal conversations, I avoid. Most people, I avoid.

      But you don't have to be outgoing to be successful in selling. But you do have to be prepared. You do have to know how selling works, how people think, how to react a certain way.

      I always just thought of it as a skill to learn. Like golf. But it's not. High level selling is like brain surgery. Every word counts, every gesture.

      Anyone that says you can be great at selling in 3 easy steps is either lying, or only knows three steps. Anyway, that's my experience.

      And I still can't dance.
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      • Profile picture of the author ewenmack
        I was the shy kid at school. It happened after I had to wear glasses when I was about 8 years old.

        As soon as it was legal I left school and went working on sheep and beef farms,
        many miles from town.

        I meet a guy at a function who said I would be good at insurance sales.
        I was shocked and a bit flattered. Had no clue why he thought I would be.
        This was after about 16 years working on farms.
        Signed up and learnt about it but never could
        bring myself to talk to people about it,
        so naturally failed.

        A couple of years later I sold weight loss products by running ads in papers
        and selling them to the callers.

        I started to get more comfortable talking to people when they called me.

        A few years later I bought a lawnmowing franchise
        where I had a small client base and paid for the marketing.
        All I had to do was talk to prospective clients.

        That soon got old, so I ran my own ads and took my own calls.

        Seemed as though I could sell when I had prospective clients contact me.
        So dumped the franchise after about 3 years and built up and sold
        my own lawnmowing businesses for about 8 years.

        Then I ventured into buying a business where I could build it up
        from pure cold calling, in person and phone.
        Yes I have been able to do it. Now we have
        clients like Puma and 10 #1 household known brand names
        plus many smaller clients.

        If you had of said to me 16 years after leaving school I could
        do sales from cold calls, I would of thought you were mad!

        Yet I feel far from being polished now.

        Best,
        Ewen
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  • Profile picture of the author socialentry
    Banned
    How can you be top salesman and offered a director position and at the same time have doubt about your sales abilities?:confused:
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    • Profile picture of the author umc
      I'll just leave this here as another perspective. If you push yourself and kind of get past that anxiety and start to do well, it is like anything, you have to keep up with it.

      I was bullied relentlessly as a kid. I have often been the smartest guy in the room, and felt very out of place. I still do, though I'm far from the smartest guy in the room anymore when I'm often in a room full of people like on this forum. Anyway, I was just always a bit out of place, and believe me, I felt it inside.

      I started telemarketing at 18 years old, and although I was petrified at first, I quickly grew into that role and loved it. I eventually was the guy getting up in front of a room of 30+ telemarketers, leading the organization. Who would have thought that I would be THAT guy? Not me.

      A few years later that company decided that I was too young to fit the mold of the image that they wanted to portray, never mind the million dollars a month I was bringing in through my department in the home improvement industry. So, I was actually demoted back to telemarketer and asked to train the new, older manager. I left instead. That was the start of me bouncing around in lots of jobs trying to find my place again.

      Eventually I started a cleaning business with my wife. We cleaned rentals, where it was just the two of us. I went on sales calls and built our business quickly, but after that I didn't talk to too many people for a while. Then we got into residential cleaning at a point, and I chose to clean bathrooms because nobody comes in and talks to you in a bathroom. I had pretty much fully reverted back to that shy kid I once was.

      So that's my cautionary tale. If you don't use it, you lose it. I never wanted to, but learned that lesson. I've really started coming back out of my shell through talking with customers and expanding our business, though it is still just my wife and I. We work around more people now, and I "talk" to a lot of people online. I believe that the written word may in a venue like this may be one of my favorite ways to communicate. Social anxiety sucks, and if you manage to beat it down, go ahead and keep it down. If you let it up off the mat, it may very well come back stronger. Just a word of caution from my own story. I've never quite regained that swagger that I had back in the day when I was leading that organization, though I'm closer than I've ever been now despite a very different life.
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      • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
        Originally Posted by umc View Post

        Eventually I started a cleaning business with my wife. We cleaned rentals, where it was just the two of us. I went on sales calls and built our business quickly, but after that I didn't talk to too many people for a while. Then we got into residential cleaning at a point, and I chose to clean bathrooms because nobody comes in and talks to you in a bathroom. I had pretty much fully reverted back to that shy kid I once was.

        So that's my cautionary tale. If you don't use it, you lose it.
        I never wanted to, but learned that lesson. I've really started coming back out of my shell through talking with customers and expanding our business, though it is still just my wife and I.
        Amen to that. Yeah, I know what you mean. I was out of in home sale for a couple of years (Just working in my store), and when I started back selling in home, it took a couple of months to get comfortable again.
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      • Profile picture of the author Ron Lafuddy
        "I've never quite regained that swagger that I had back in the day when I was leading that organization, though I'm closer than I've ever been now despite a very different life."

        Yeah, but it's there inside you, at the ready, if you need to call on it. And that's a good feeling.
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    • Profile picture of the author yeoman
      I've been in sales since the seventh grade, cold calling since college (25 years ago) and I will be cold calling on Monday morning. Yes, I will be nervous every time someone answers the phone, but especially those first twenty dials.
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  • Profile picture of the author kenmichaels
    I find it really interesting all the people that said, yes I was terrified
    or yeah I was the shy kid.

    Interesting how they are or have been some of the best in the industry.

    BTW you can add me to the yes I was the shy kid to.
    ( still am sorta. ) I just deal with it as I deal with anything.

    Head on.
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    • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
      Originally Posted by kenmichaels View Post

      I find it really interesting all the people that said, yes I was terrified
      or yeah I was the shy kid.

      Interesting how they are or have been some of the best in the industry.

      BTW you can add me to the yes I was the shy kid to.
      ( still am sorta. ) I just deal with it as I deal with anything.

      Head on.
      I think I know the answer. When you are painfully shy, it takes a real effort just to function in a group. that effort can continue after you are used to talking with people...so you get better and better.

      People that are naturally outgoing and popular, may never develop their sales skills beyond a basic level. They are simply not used to putting any effort into it. I see that all the time.

      Everything about selling was an uphill battle for me. But the benefit of an uphill battle, is that you can keep going up.
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      • Profile picture of the author Ron Lafuddy
        I've known folks who were naturally outgoing and popular. Some had sales experience in their background, but had moved on. When the discussion touched on this, their reason for leaving was mostly some form of, "I just couldn't take the rejection".

        So, I think it's as you say Claude, they never put in the effort necessary to develop beyond their natural limitations.
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  • Profile picture of the author dreamer123
    Thanks for your awesome replies guys! I am forever grateful. Ive heard a lot of people say that 80% of success in sales is down to your attitude. What do you legends think?

    Does attitude beat aptitude/ability in sales?
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    • Profile picture of the author Jason Kanigan
      Originally Posted by dreamer123 View Post

      Thanks for your awesome replies guys! I am forever grateful. Ive heard a lot of people say that 80% of success in sales is down to your attitude. What do you legends think?

      Does attitude beat aptitude/ability in sales?
      If you don't believe in yourself, you won't do the behaviors.

      If you don't do the behaviors, you won't get the results.

      Nearly every problem in selling is head trash. Sales a conceptual activity, not a technical one.
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    • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
      Originally Posted by dreamer123 View Post

      Thanks for your awesome replies guys! I am forever grateful. Ive heard a lot of people say that 80% of success in sales is down to your attitude. What do you legends think?

      Does attitude beat aptitude/ability in sales?
      You have to have both. Like Kanigan says; You have to believe in yourself or you won't make the effort.

      But you have to know what you are doing. Motivation alone makes you a motivated moron. You develop skills to make your ambition pay off.

      And that's the secret of being shy. You can be a shy person with Ambition.
      And ambition will force you to learn.
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  • Profile picture of the author misterme
    Yes, people used to stare at me and I didn't know why. Turns out they found me good looking but I didn't let that deter me.
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    • Profile picture of the author Ron Lafuddy
      Originally Posted by misterme View Post

      Yes, people used to stare at me and I didn't know why. Turns out they found me good looking but I didn't let that deter me.
      misterme,

      I believe it's your uncanny resemblance to a well-known Hollywood icon.
      Drives the women mad and leaves the men green with envy.
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    • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
      Originally Posted by misterme View Post

      Yes, people used to stare at me and I didn't know why. Turns out they found me good looking but I didn't let that deter me.
      You're a rock. Your story brought a tear to my eye. How you overcame your tragic handsomeness, to go on to being successful...is an inspiration to us all.


      One thing I see a lot of, is a salesperson who has the social and cultural bias against asking people for money...or "selling". Most normal people find it distasteful to talk about money. I was oblivious to all that. It didn't bother me if they said "No", and I didn't get excited if they said "Yes".

      But I watched sooo many salespeople freeze when it came time to close. The part of the brain that finds selling socially unacceptable...is just missing in me.

      Good.
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      • I, too, have struggled with social anxiety and shyness for most of my life. I also stumbled into a sales position and became very successful with it.

        I actually have come to the belief that highly self-conscious people can become some of the best salespeople because of our constant concern with how the other person is perceiving us.

        When it comes to selling, you've got to be aware of how the other person is reacting to what you are saying (and gesturing). I grew up constantly wondering if I looked "cool enough", "good enough", or if what I was doing/saying was "liked" by the people that I was trying to impress.

        Now, I use this skill/curse of being aware of how another person is reacting to me to make money selling to them....

        ...I use strategic marketing combined with a solid product to make the selling process even easier for me.
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  • Profile picture of the author Rearden
    I was afraid of calling Pizza Hut in my teens to order a pizza.

    I played video games throughout my whole life; never interested in sports or team-based endeavors.

    However, my passion for running things my way outweighed my introvertedness, thank goodness.
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  • Profile picture of the author marketingstatic
    I experienced similar effects after changing jobs and not doing sales. i have a background in Tech so I have done allot of help desk jobs and field service jobs that didn't require the skills to sell or talk with people except when they were desperate for my assistance.

    Just remember there are businesses out there that are in fact desperate for help you just need to be there at the right time which means persistance pays off.
    -
    One of the simplest pitches a friend of mine used to make in growing his telecom install business was just walking around business parks and asking " How are your phones working" but he did it with a big smile and would offer to program an extension or answer a question if they had any. This guy was busy all the time because he just asked how their phones worked and offered to help. So whatever your selling just ad your own line like "Hows that website performing for you" if they say good. Just say great, if you would like it to do something more for you here is my card, is there anything else I might help with?


    The way it was finally explained in a way my brain works is that we are told as youth DONT talk to strangers. We basically are trained at an early age DANGER in doing so. Therefore you just have to PRACTICE, PRACTICE, PRACTICE...speaking to people even if its to your spouse or friend to get your going.
    -
    I used to hate rejection but turned it into a JOKE or GAME in my mind of some sort and began to just make calls and walk in to businesses to offer marketing advice. Fact was I found very little resistance on some days and others it was like I may as well just stayed home because I didn't get through to speak to one DM or decision maker which-
    + has to become your only goal.+
    When you do that as a goal it often makes you feel like less offended that the secretary was having a bad day at a job they probably dont like either.
    -- Just remember they may get allot of calls and may feel like your the one keeping them busy with stuff that makes them miss deadlines and be patient and polite when speaking to GK gate keepers there just people that put their time in like you once did.
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  • Profile picture of the author Matthew North
    I was the shy kid too. And I still have an avoidant personality socially. I'm not interested in having surface-level conversations with people. I guess that's why.
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  • Profile picture of the author Ron Lafuddy
    I had a daily paper route when I was 13. It changed my life.

    I had to learn how to deal with people (some of my customers were absolutely crazy) .

    I had to learn how to ask for business.
    By doing so, I doubled the number of customers I started with.

    I had to learn how to ask for money - and how to collect it when
    they didn't want to pay me. If the customer didn't pay, it came out
    of my pocket.

    I had to keep good records; what was owed to me and by whom.
    I would have been lost, without developing good record keeping skills.

    Also, the ability to handle cash. No checks or credit cards in those days.
    People paid in cash.

    Looking back on it, a lot of my early sales skills, grit and resolve came from
    that experience.
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    • Profile picture of the author jake244
      For some reason cold calling is something I hate even today...

      I have no problem contacting leads and prospects who have responded to an advertisement or direct mail piece though.

      But as luck will have it in my ad sales days I use to cold call business owners out of the blue and offer them something free like a free report or booklet to build a relationship with them and use that platform to later sale them some ad space in a directory we use to publish. This tactic helped me break the ice and darn sure helped with the nerves.
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  • Profile picture of the author tonyscott
    Originally Posted by dreamer123 View Post


    3. I had a very supportive manager who really believed in me and in the end I became the highest performing and longest serving salesperson in the companys history eventually being promoted to director and having my own office.

    4. I now work in ad sales (only started about 2 months ago) and have had some pretty remarkable achievments at this new place however I feel like my social anxiety is kicking in again and my self confidence is at an all time low. Im starting to get tounge tied more and more often. How can I regain my confidence and smash my targets like I used to?

    Thanks a millon.
    I could be wrong, but on the surface, it looks to me like you need someone to validate how good you are and someone who believes in you. If you've had some remarkable acheivements, but no one recognises them, what's the point?

    I assume that you've been paid well for these acheivements, but money doesn't necessarily = happiness or high self esteeem.

    Either work out how to get this validation in order to maintain your confidence, or work out how to generate it for yourself.

    The second option is obviously preferable, long term.

    But mainly, learn how to enjoy the journey.

    You sound like a capable person.

    You'll probably have a very good life.

    You just might want to look at working on yourself a little. It will pay huge dividends.

    As for me ...

    I was an engineer from leaving school till age 26

    I was good at it

    I made one of the worlds first prototye heart valves somewhere around 1980 (just the monkey, not the organ grinder)

    I grew up in a "children should be seen and not heard" household with an overly critical father.

    So you can imagine my inbuilt "it's best not to speak" programme

    But, the engineering job didn't pay enough to match my expectations of life

    And I couldn't get my head around this ...

    If I did a superb job and produced something close to a work of art, I got paid X

    If I did an awful job with little thought, I still got paid X

    If I did a great job but made a mistake that probably meant starting over again, I got also still got paid X

    And I just couldn't get my head around how that system was of any use to me, or my employer ...

    So I left and got a job selling insurance

    I wasn't good at it, because I had no good reference points in my upbringing to deal with the situations that I found myself in.

    But that's probably why I put myself into that, for me, hazardous lifestyle.

    The best thing I learned was, don't wear dark shirts and, try not to smell like you're scared.

    I lasted 15 years in financial services. I made ok money, but it wasn't me.

    I've done lots of things since ...

    Bottom line

    Doing stuff, teaches you stuff

    Have a great week

    Tony
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  • Profile picture of the author dreamer123
    Great stuff guy thanks
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  • Profile picture of the author longrobnc
    Naturally, I am a hermit. I'm not a social person, at all. Speaking to another human is painful for me. Even my family. I have had so many ugly and negative life experiences that I stay to myself as much as I can. I'm probably the moodiest and most brooding person that most people will have the displeasure to meet. I grew up in a very small mobile home with 10 brothers and sisters. Mental illness, violence and drug use are rife in my family. I have what amounts to an elementary school education. I lived near poverty for many years of my life.

    All of that aside, I am able to sell millions of dollars in products each year and I've built a very successful business. I was able to do this because the need to provide for my family was stronger than my mental hang ups. I'm still pretty much a wreck, but I can mask those feelings long enough to get my job done.
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    • Profile picture of the author dreamer123
      Originally Posted by longrobnc View Post

      Naturally, I am a hermit. I'm not a social person, at all. Speaking to another human is painful for me. Even my family. I have had so many ugly and negative life experiences that I stay to myself as much as I can. I'm probably the moodiest and most brooding person that most people will have the displeasure to meet. I grew up in a very small mobile home with 10 brothers and sisters. Mental illness, violence and drug use are rife in my family. I have what amounts to an elementary school education. I lived near poverty for many years of my life.

      All of that aside, I am able to sell millions of dollars in products each year and I've built a very successful business. I was able to do this because the need to provide for my family was stronger than my mental hang ups. I'm still pretty much a wreck, but I can mask those feelings long enough to get my job done.
      Wow! That seems like the key. Your desire to sell must be so strong that it gets rid of your social anxiety. Very powerful stuff!
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  • Profile picture of the author aunttee
    I am everyone in this thread. The first time my Myers-Briggs outed me as a hermit, everyone in the room gasped.

    That's because I have a rule: FAKE IT TIL YOU MAKE IT.

    I have terrible anxiety, and was a stage performer until the stupid anxiety took over that, too. I don't know why it did... never mind. Think Barbra Streisand, she has this too.

    Push forward. Keep faking it.
    Play this game: For every 10 "no" answers I get, I can have xxx. (a treat, a cup of coffee, a walk. 5 minutes alone) So you're focusing on the no's and you'll get a yes in there. Yay!

    Also, find that someone who will celebrate your success with you, an accountability partner.

    Just an observation, I think if 'people like us' don't stay on top of our game, we tend to back slide a little. You said you had not done the job for awhile, and now you feel like you can't. But you can, it's in there somewhere. Focus on that. Pull that person out of you. Sometimes I pretend I'm my mother, who is much more outspoken and a lot stronger than me.
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    • Profile picture of the author Claude Whitacre
      Originally Posted by aunttee View Post

      I am everyone in this thread. The first time my Myers-Briggs outed me as a hermit, everyone in the room gasped.

      That's because I have a rule: FAKE IT TIL YOU MAKE IT.
      the problem is, you can fake confidence...but you can't fake competence.

      If you spend time really getting good at what you are doing, there is no need to fake it.
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    • Profile picture of the author dreamer123
      Originally Posted by aunttee View Post

      I am everyone in this thread. The first time my Myers-Briggs outed me as a hermit, everyone in the room gasped.

      That's because I have a rule: FAKE IT TIL YOU MAKE IT.

      I have terrible anxiety, and was a stage performer until the stupid anxiety took over that, too. I don't know why it did... never mind. Think Barbra Streisand, she has this too.

      Push forward. Keep faking it.
      Play this game: For every 10 "no" answers I get, I can have xxx. (a treat, a cup of coffee, a walk. 5 minutes alone) So you're focusing on the no's and you'll get a yes in there. Yay!

      Also, find that someone who will celebrate your success with you, an accountability partner.

      Just an observation, I think if 'people like us' don't stay on top of our game, we tend to back slide a little. You said you had not done the job for awhile, and now you feel like you can't. But you can, it's in there somewhere. Focus on that. Pull that person out of you. Sometimes I pretend I'm my mother, who is much more outspoken and a lot stronger than me.
      Do you have any useful tips for faking it?
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  • Profile picture of the author daniyal100
    I am shy kid too and soon to be a high performing sales guy.. But I won't consider myself a successful sales man if I doing more sales then any others in a local call center of 50 people and making 5k monthly..
    But that's what good sales men make doing a job though.
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    • Profile picture of the author tryinhere
      Originally Posted by daniyal100 View Post

      I am shy kid too and soon to be a high performing sales guy.. But I won't consider myself a successful sales man if I doing more sales then any others in a local call center of 50 people and making 5k monthly..
      But that's what good sales men make doing a job though.
      Im sure good telemarketers must make more than that a month ?
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      • Profile picture of the author daniyal100
        Originally Posted by tryinhere View Post

        Im sure good telemarketers must make more than that a month ?
        If you search for average telemarketer salary in indeed,glass door or any other reputable job site its between 25k - 34k annually before tax and everything.

        To break it down its between 2k - 3k and yes that's for telemarketing jobs which including actual selling and closing. I still said 50k though
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        • Profile picture of the author Matthew North
          Originally Posted by daniyal100 View Post

          If you search for average telemarketer salary in indeed,glass door or any other reputable job site its between 25k - 34k annually before tax and everything.

          To break it down its between 2k - 3k and yes that's for telemarketing jobs which including actual selling and closing. I still said 50k though
          In my experience it depends a lot on where you live, what the product is and and what kind of sales you are doing.

          In Melbourne, Australia, I had a telesales job which paid a $60,000 base plus quarterly bonuses. Most were on $100,000+ and a few over $200,000 before tax. The product and company were very good due to government affiliation, and you were also calling warm leads.

          Keep in mind that Melbourne has one of the highest costs of living in the world, aside from Sydney. So the cost of living effects things a lot.

          But in relative terms, I have seen jobs which pay $38,000 per year selling advertising in a local newspaper. Even if you greatly exceed your targets, you will not earn more than $60,000 per year.

          In most phone sales roles, you will find the majority of owners will try to rip you off by underpaying you. Expect the low ball and bat accordingly.

          If you are going to do this sort of work it's important to sell a high value product with a nice margin for everyone. Warm leads preferably. If you are just starting out in a cold calling environment, it's very important to know that the script and sales process is tested and effective, they have a dallier, and they have consultants which are able to close the leads you set for them.

          There is a common mentality that I see from business owners that they just hire a person to sit on the phone and dial and they will get a positive return. In reality, unless that person is very experienced, it won't work that way. Watch out for those kinds of places.
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          you cant hold no groove if you ain't got no pocket.

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          • Profile picture of the author daniyal100
            Originally Posted by Matthew North View Post

            In my experience it depends a lot on where you live, what the product is and and what kind of sales you are doing.

            In Melbourne, Australia, I had a telesales job which paid a $60,000 base plus quarterly bonuses. Most were on $100,000+ and a few over $200,000 before tax. The product and company were very good due to government affiliation, and you were also calling warm leads.

            Keep in mind that Melbourne has one of the highest costs of living in the world, aside from Sydney. So the cost of living effects things a lot.

            But in relative terms, I have seen jobs which pay $38,000 per year selling advertising in a local newspaper. Even if you greatly exceed your targets, you will not earn more than $60,000 per year.

            In most phone sales roles, you will find the majority of owners will try to rip you off by underpaying you. Expect the low ball and bat accordingly.

            If you are going to do this sort of work it's important to sell a high value product with a nice margin for everyone. Warm leads preferably. If you are just starting out in a cold calling environment, it's very important to know that the script and sales process is tested and effective, they have a dallier, and they have consultants which are able to close the leads you set for them.

            There is a common mentality that I see from business owners that they just hire a person to sit on the phone and dial and they will get a positive return. In reality, unless that person is very experienced, it won't work that way. Watch out for those kinds of places.
            It would be valuable if your share some facts and figures from some authentic sources like i did.
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  • Profile picture of the author leadgenninja
    My first job was as a telemarketer and I quit by lunch. They were pretty pissed about that.

    Suffered from anxiety and panic attacks almost all my life. I ended up getting fired from several jobs because I would get panic attacks and just leave.

    One day I decided enough was enough and I systematically got off all the medication the "experts" prescribed me. The moment I started to face my fears is when things turned around. Within 2 years I had a ad agency doing over a million in revenue per year.
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    • Profile picture of the author daniyal100
      Originally Posted by leadgenninja View Post

      My first job was as a telemarketer and I quit by lunch. They were pretty pissed about that.

      Suffered from anxiety and panic attacks almost all my life. I ended up getting fired from several jobs because I would get panic attacks and just leave.

      One day I decided enough was enough and I systematically got off all the medication the "experts" prescribed me. The moment I started to face my fears is when things turned around. Within 2 years I had a ad agency doing over a million in revenue per year.
      Believe me I believe you from the deep of my heart.
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    • Profile picture of the author dreamer123
      Originally Posted by leadgenninja View Post

      My first job was as a telemarketer and I quit by lunch. They were pretty pissed about that.

      Suffered from anxiety and panic attacks almost all my life. I ended up getting fired from several jobs because I would get panic attacks and just leave.

      One day I decided enough was enough and I systematically got off all the medication the "experts" prescribed me. The moment I started to face my fears is when things turned around. Within 2 years I had a ad agency doing over a million in revenue per year.
      Did you do anything that helped you with facing your fears like deep breathing, affirmations, deep breathing etc?
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    • Profile picture of the author Slade556
      Originally Posted by leadgenninja View Post

      One day I decided enough was enough and I systematically got off all the medication the "experts" prescribed me. The moment I started to face my fears is when things turned around. Within 2 years I had a ad agency doing over a million in revenue per year.
      That's what everyone should do, but not everyone has the willpower. taking some pill doesn't make your problems magically go away, but the will do change yourself and become a better person does! Plus, the idea that anxiety is losing you money, that's just the icing on the cake, IMO!
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